A few years ago, I was involved in training the laity of a local church in the activity we call personal evangelism, and I did that over a period of sixteen weeks. Of that sixteen weeks, about three weeks required …Read More

Before we attend a church, we should know that it is a legitimate church. Now, obviously, if the sign on the front of the church reads “Church of Satan,” we know it isn’t a legitimate body of Christian believers. But …Read More

Certainly not specifically. Many people have attempted, by a careful (and sometimes a not so careful) examination of the prophetic passages of Scripture to establish a timetable. Some have even predicted months, days and years— none of which, up to …Read More

I presume you mean by that artificial methods of birth control. That’s one of those issues in Christian ethics where there is a seriously divided house in the history of the church. The Roman Catholic Church, as you are aware, …Read More

I don’t know how many times I’ve seen on the walls of pastors’ studies or in Christian homes the little sign, Expect a Miracle. If a miracle is something we can expect, like we expect the postman every morning, it …Read More

In my own theological tradition, we believe that those children who die in infancy are numbered among the redeemed. That is to say, we hope and have a certain level of confidence that God will be particularly gracious toward those …Read More

There is a tremendous difference between the popular definition of a miracle in our culture and the narrow technical definition of a miracle that theologians work with in their science. We can often have serious communication problems when people ask …Read More

That question comes up every year at Christmastime. In the first place, there’s no direct biblical commandment to celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25. There’s nothing in the Bible that would even indicate that Jesus was born on …Read More

First of all, we need to establish that it is the sovereign God who not only invites us but commands us to pray. Prayer is a duty, and as we perform that duty, one thing for sure is going to …Read More

The answer to this question is clear from Scripture. The people who lived in Old Testament times had the sacrificial system, but the blood of bulls and goats didn’t atone for anyone. These things pointed the people of Israel beyond …Read More

Unfortunately, in today’s Christian environment the whole idea of thinking has become suspect. It’s as if using our natural abilities of intellect—particularly in areas of career— somehow represents a lack of faith. The concept is that we’re supposed to entrust …Read More

I feel hopelessly inadequate to answer some of the very perplexing issues that have arisen because of the explosion of modern technology. In the case of most ethical questions, theologians have had the benefit of two thousand years of careful …Read More

One year I was invited to speak at the inaugural prayer breakfast for the newly elected governor of the state of Florida. On that occasion I had the opportunity to speak with men and women who were in strategic places …Read More

First of all, you are a human being, and you’re a person who’s been claimed by Christ. You are in the kingdom, so the Scriptures you use to learn of your responsibilities and duties before God start at Genesis 1:1 …Read More

I think the New Testament does teach that the whole world is born into the consequences of a fallen nature because of the sin of Adam and Eve. The New Testament repeats this idea frequently—“that through the disobedience of one …Read More